The “Biobank Platform for Germany” (BPD) now has its own project page on the Network of University Medicine (NUM) website. The new page provides an overview of the project’s objectives, structure and implementation, which is intended to facilitate access to quality-assured biological samples and clinical and analytical data throughout Germany in future.
The Biobank Platform links existing biobanks, Data Integration Centres and other Research Infrastructures to form a comprehensive, service-oriented network. A key objective is cross-site ‘biobanking on demand’: researchers should be able to use a central portal to request specific biological samples and data for their scientific enquiries – both from existing collections and prospectively.
The platform builds on the long-standing experience and structures of the German Biobank Network (GBN) and is being implemented in collaboration with the university medical centres within the NUM. Uniform quality and data protection standards, transparent access models and the integration of omics and other analytical data lay the foundation for the sustainable use of biological samples and health data in medical research.
The development of the platform is based on a broad consortium of partners from university medicine, biobanking, research, industry and other relevant fields. The new project page provides information on the work packages, participating sites, management structures and current developments.